Day 3 - The Cardio Question

So today I worked my temp job again and found it nearly impossible to drag myself out of bed! Thank goodness I don't have too much to do at this particular job because I was spent. Sleeping on a futon mattress is not always the most comfortable night's sleep. I'm hoping one of the gifts we purchase after the wedding is a new mattress! We definitely need one.

I wanted to do some research on the whole cardio question: Is the whole "endurance running" "slow and steady" type of cardio the way to drop the pounds or can it be done with much shorter bursts? I once heard you can work out for shorter bursts of cardio and STILL drop the weight.

Even if it takes you all day.

All I know is I've BUSTED my ass trying to get into the whole "running/jogging" thing. I've TRIED to get the whole endurance thing and, honestly, I SUCK at it. It just makes me feel defeated and angry, and subsequently, depressed. Last summer I was on the treadmill 5 days a week running no less than 2.5 - 3.0 miles each time and I didn't see a damn thing change. Not in my body, not in my jeans, not on the scale. I was so defeated and disappointed. I gave up. I thought, well, first of all, at the end of the 3 miles I was spent. I had no interest/want to do more. Plus, it was doing NOTHING for me. I would check my heart rate on those hand sensors and I was CONSTANTLY running OVER 90% of my MHR. Unless I slowed to a VERY SLOW jog or a walk, I was always in that zone. I found myself burning out. Mentally and physically.

So, I decided that this time I was going to try something new. I was going to try to bust out my cardio during the commercial breaks of my favorite shows. I found it's much easier to do the weights while the show is going on (and still be able to follow the story) but not the cardio. So I'm putting it to the test. The other thing it does, is it gives me a "deadline". I know it'll never be more than a constant 4 minutes of "busting it out". I can do ANYTHING for 4 minutes! And sometimes it's less.

I figured something out.

I've always been a "sprinter". My career choices, as an actor/temp/etc. always have an end-date. I work best on "projects". I guess I get bored very quickly. But I have all this energy to put into something and I burn out if I don't see progress soon. I think the same goes for exercise/cardio. I can sprint. I could ALWAYS sprint. I was one of the fastest in Middle School. But once we had to do endurance runs, I almost always came in the last group. I just burned out early.

So I'm trying it out. Let's see what happens, right? This whole thing is an experiment! :)

I feel great today, though. I took a nap. AND I DON'T FEEL GUILTY ABOUT IT! My body actually really needed it. And when I finally got up to get my evening started and do my work out, I felt GREAT! So, YAY ME!

Also: Goal of drinking my 60 oz of water before 12:30pm = COMPLETE! (YAY ME, AGAIN! And I did get a few leg lifts in at the desk! Not as many as I wanted, but I still got a few in!)

Calories Consumed: 1123

Workout: 80 biceps curls (8 lbs), 80 triceps extensions (8 lbs), 80 chest flies (8 lbs), 80 shoulder press (8 lbs!) 80 dumbbell rows -each side- (15 lbs)
Cardio: 25 minutes cardio